James thobnton



(No Model.)

' J. THORNTON.

WHIP SOCKET.

No. 285,707. Patented Sept. 25, 188 3.

j/lMmme s N, 92mm mmum m, Wuhin'lon. n. a

UNITED STATES;

. PAT NT OFFICE.

JAMES THORNTON, OF VVELLS VILLE, NE\V YORK, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-FOURTH TO HORACE G. DOBBINS, OF SAME PLACE.

WH l P-SOC-KET.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 285,707, dated September 25, 1883.

Application filed January 25, 1883.

to hold the whip securely, and can be enlarged or contracted for holding large or small whips.

My invention consists of the peculiar construction of the whip-socket, which will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed out in I the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of my improved whip-socket. Fig. 2 is a side elevation, and Fig. 3 is a top plan View, thereof. Fig. 4 is a perspective View illustrating the manner in which the whip-socket is secured to a sleigh or cutter. Fig. 5 is a perspective View of the back plate of the socket.

Like letters of reference refer to like parts in the several figures:

The socket represented in the drawings is of the class inwhich the whip is wedged by its own weight into the socket and held at three points. The body of the socket is composed 0 of two curved side pieces, AA,which are connected at their upper ends to a semicircular top piece, B, which is open at the front. The side pieces, A A, extend downwardly from the front ends of the semicircular top piece, 5 B, and approach each other at thefront so closely, as shown at a a, as to confine the whip in the socket, the adjacent portions a a of the side pieces, A A, forming the front support of the whip when placed in the socket. The 0 front edges of the side pieces, A A, rccede from each other below the portions a a thereof, and the side pieces are connected at'their lower ends with a bottom piece, 0, which is curved forwardly, and which forms a support 5 for the butt-end of the whip-stock. The whip inserted in the socket rests on the rear side of the socket against the top piece, B, and the bottom piece, 0, and at the front side of the socket against the adjacent portions (4 a of the side pieces, and is thereby supported at three points and firmly wedged in the socket. The

(No model.)

body of the whip-socket, composed of the top piece, B, side pieces, A A, and bottom piece.

0, is cast in one piece of malleable iron or other suitable metal, and as the front edges of the side pieces, A A, are not connected with each .other, these side pieces can be closed against each other or further separated, in order to adapt the socket to confine a smaller whip or receive a larger whip than that for which it was constructed.

. (2 represents an car which is formed on the top piece, B, for the purpose of securing the upper end of the whip-socket to'the body of a sleigh or cutter, as represented in Fig. 4. The 6 5 car d is arranged on the left-hand side of the top piece, 13, and may project laterally there from, as represented in Fig. 1; or it may proj ect upwardly or downwardly, as may be preferred. If the earprojects laterally froin the 0 socket, as shown in the drawings, it rests upon the upper edge of the swelled body of the cutter or sleigh, as represented in Fig. 4, and

if the ear projects upwardly or downwardly,

it rests against the side of such body. The ear is provided with an opening for the re ception of a fastening-screw.

e represents an ear formed on the rear side of the top piece, 13, and provided with an open ing for the reception of a fastening-screw.

1 represents an elongated opening formed in the rear portion of the bottom piece, 0, of the socket, for the reception of a fasteningscrew. When the socket is secured to the side of the swelled body of a cutter or sleigh, as represented in Fig. 4, the opened rear portion of the socket is protected by a plate, G,which .is secured with its upper end to the ear e, and

with its lower end to the rear side of the bottom piece, 0. The plate G is provided at its 0 upper end with an opening, 72, through which passes the fastening screw which passes through the ear 6, and at its lower end with an elongated opening, 1', through which passes the fasteningscrew which passes through the 5 elongated opening f. The fastening-screw Z, which passes through the elongated opening f of the socket, serves to secure the socket to the cross-bea1n m of the cutter-frame, as represented in Fig. 4, the lower end of the plate e G being clamped between the bottom piece, 0, of the socket and the rear side of the crossbeam on. Therplate G obstructs the open rear portion of the socket between the top piece, B, and the bottom piece, 0, and prevents the butt-end of the whip, on being inserted in the socket, from passing out through this opening,

but guides the butt-end of the whip toward the bottom piece, 0, of the socket. When the socket is secured with its back against a dashboard, the .plate G is omitted, and the socket is secured to the dashboard by screws passing through the ear 6 and the elongated opening f. The elongated openings f and 1' permit the socket to be readily secured to cutters or sleighs in which the'distance between the upper edge of the swelled body and the crossbeam m varies.

The adjacent front portions a a, of the side pieces, A A, are arranged nearerthe top piece, 13, than to the point at which the butt of the whip-stock bears against the bottom piece, 0, whereby the whip is held more securely than it is in a socket in which the front bearing is arranged lower down.

I claim as my invention- 1. A whip-socket composed of a top piece, B, open at its front, side pieces, A A, extending downwardly from the top piece, B, and having their adjacent front edges separated and arranged in such close proximity as to form a support for the whip, and a bottom piece, 0, open at the front and extending downwardly and forwardly from the lower ends of the side pieces, A A, the whole being formed in one piece, substantially as set forth.

2. A whipsocket composed of a top piece, B, open at its front, side pieces, A A, extend ing downwardly from the top piece, B, and having their adjacent front edges separated and arranged in such close proximity as to form a support for the whip, a bottom piece, 0, open at the front and extending downwardly and forwardly from the lower ends of the side pieces, and a back plate, G, secured to the top piece, B, and the bottom piece, 0, substan tially as set forth.

3. The combination, with the body of a whip-socket composed of a top piece, 13, provided with an ear, 0, side pieces, A A, and a bottom piece, 0, provided with an elongated opening, f, of a back plate, Gr, providedwith openings h and i, and fastenings whereby the plate G is secured to the body of the socket, substantially as set forth.

JAMES THORNTON;

\Vitnesses:

WV. '1. THORNTON, V. E. MINNELEY. 

